PUEBLO, Colo. – If we had a nickel for every time we’ve seen “Dias dominates …” following almost any given out or event throughout the 2024 Unleash The Beast season …
… well, we wouldn’t quite have the tour-leading $436,274 that No. 1 Cassio Dias has earned during his record-shattering rookie season.
But we’d definitely have a few bucks!
After picking up his premier series-best SEVENTH win, the year one standout is now just one victory away from tying a pair of two-time World Champions in Jose Vitor Leme and Justin McBride for the tour record of eight.
Technically, with the 2024 PBR World Finals: Unleash The Beast event title itself still up for grabs, Dias is very much still within reach of premier series greatness.
(Not that he hasn’t already put himself in said company!)
RELATED: Cassio Dias concludes 2024 Unleash The Beast regular season in Louisville with seventh event victory
Cleaning up after a rare, sloppy weekend in the Pacific Northwest, where he went a combined 1-for-4 (after declining a 76.5-point ride in Everett’s opening round, thus accepting a re-ride, but unable to convert), the pack frontrunner couldn’t’ve have rebounded in a bigger way.
Plus, when you consider each of the other four Top 5-ranked riders found the ride column at some point in Louisville, he was wise to get things back on track en route to defending his epic lead atop the Unleash The Beast World Championship standings.
And by “defend” we mean extend, as Dias skyrocketed himself another 65-some points ahead of No. 2 John Crimber courtesy of yet another big win.
Opening his productive weekend in eye-popping fashion, Dias was very much out of position halfway through his attempt, literally hanging over the right side of his bull. But with an epic next move, the only way Dias knows, he willed himself back atop the bovine and finished out the 8 seconds with a formidable 86.75-point effort atop Let’s Roll.
While his second-round out was cut short in 3.79 seconds, thanks to a nice effort from Smooth Steel, the World Champion to-be ensured he returned to the championship round with a vengeance.
Selecting Do Dat Eddie as his third and final opponent of the weekend, the tour’s top-ranked rider left the remainder of the pack in the dust as he teamed up with one of the circuit’s most recent money bulls in popping off for an event-clinching 88.75 points.
Waving to the fans with his patented, flashy movements, Dias was feeling it once again, now just two weeks ahead of the 2024 PBR World Finals.
Already having reset several rookie records, including championship round wins (eight), overall round wins (13), riding percentage (53.62%) and beyond, he’s already made his mark on the rookie-fueled campaign.
All that’s left to do is seal the deal inside AT&T Stadium, where he already has the No. 1 ranked locked up through that point (the 2024 PBR World Finals: Unleash The Beast – Championship).
Knowing that you could literally combine the UTB points riders ranked No. 47 (Ederson Santos, the lowest-ranked qualifier) through No. 36 (Ezekiel Mitchell) have earned in order to get close to meeting the monstrous total Dias has secured during his first UTB season, he has to be feeling pretty good about his odds.
But then again, that’s why we play the game.
(Because ANYHTING can happen!)
With the premier series pack set to rest up this weekend in preparation for the tour’s season-culminating showdown in Fort Worth, Texas, May 9-16 and Arlington, Texas, May 18-19, as the best bull riders in the world await the 2024 PBR World Finals: Unleash The Beast, we’re taking a quick look back at some of the numerical takeaways from last weekend’s Cooper Tires PBR Louisville, presented by Pneu-Dart during this week’s By the Numbers!
2-for-3: One of two riders to exit the regular season finale with 174.75 aggregate points, Kasel picked up his ninth Top 5 finish of the season via his second-place tie in Louisville, eventually finishing just three-quarters of a point (.75) behind Dias for what would’ve been his second event title of the season. Opening his productive showcase Friday night with a healthy 85-point strike aboard Tick, the 25-year-old continued his gold buckle-worthy campaign with a night one conversion. And while his second-round opponent, Rowdy, sent him to the dirt earlier than expected, the Muleshoe, Texas, native recollected himself in his most recent short round.
“Cashing in” aboard Top Dollar during his round-winning, 89.75-point journey, Kasel matched his championship round bovine’s every move en route to skyrocketing to the top of the event leaderboard. While Dias eventually surpassed the talented cowboy, courtesy of his event-clinching dance with Do Dat Eddie a few riders later, it doesn’t stop the red-hot Kasel from being 4-for-6 over his last two events as he continues to ride his way into World Finals form.
Since piecing together a six-out ride streak midway through the season (which began in Jacksonville, Florida, back in late February), Kasel is now 16-for-27 (59.2%) as he continues to occupy the tour’s No. 3 spot. Now 571.33 UTB points behind Dias in the Unleash The Beast World Championship standings, Kasel will need to make some noise early into the 2024 PBR World Finals: Unleash The Beast – Eliminations if he hopes to catch the rookie runaway. But after seeing Kasel excel when the lights are brightest for several seasons now, we’d expect nothing less.
RELATED: Kasel calm, cool and collected amidst frantic world title race as World Finals approaches
Second x Two: The other rider to go 2-for-3 en route to earning a matching 174.75 aggregate score, Mason Taylor showed up inside KFC Yum! Center in a BIG way.
Entering the weekend ranked No. 40, officially on the bubble, Taylor was sent to the dirt during his opening round matchup against The Agenda. But when Saturday rolled around, and the rider had fallen to No. 41, he officially needed to ride his way into the season-ending showdown. And proceeded to do just that, staying perfect throughout the final two rounds.
Sustaining five attempts throughout the three-round weekend, courtesy of re-ride opportunities granted in both Rounds 1 and 2, to say the veteran earned his late-season berth would be an understatement. Scored a welcomed 86.25 points in Round 2 atop Mr. Nightlinger, Taylor was officially on the board. Needing to bring some momentum into the short go, he opted into a third-round dance with none other than Norse God. Which quickly proved to be a wise choice, as the duo were in perfect time!
Earning a season-high 88.5 points for the conversion, it may be Taylor’s just second effort to come in north of the 88-point mark this time around. That said, he’s had just ten qualified rides throughout his up-and-down campaign. So, the fact that he secured his spot inside Cowtown Coliseum during the 2024 PBR World Finals: Eliminations has to be viewed as a win in his book. Set to enter the final event of the season ranked No. 32 overall, the 24-year-old is worth keeping an eye on, now 4-for-9 throughout his last three UTB appearances.
Fourth 4 No. 2: Taylor undoubtedly needed a high-scored ride when his turn atop the chutes came in Round 2. But if there was any other man in the building who could’ve needed a ride just as much, not only as he continues to chase down No. 1 Cassio Dias, but in needing to see his name appear on the event leaderboard, it was 18-year-old John Crimber. And he did just that, eventually picking up his 11th round win of his next-level rookie season.
Going the distance in Round 2 by besting Renegade for a whopping 88.75 points in his lone conversion on the weekend, he solidified his rookie regular-season record at 25-for-58 as he figured things out pretty quickly despite this being his first time on the circuit. With only five riders able to record 25 qualified rides in 2024 (Dias, Crimber, Kasel, No. 4 Eduardo Aparecido and No. 5 Alan de Souza), it’s fair to say he’s landed amongst elite company during his first trip around the country.
Turning in a fourth-place finish in Louisville, the son of Paulo Crimber exited the season-ending showcase with the highest aggregate score among cowboys with one conversion. Trailing only Dias in 90-point rides this season (4 to the tour leader’s 8), he has more than enough firepower to chase down his fellow rookie.
The question remains: Will he?
RELATED: Crimber continues to grind, heads to Velocity Finals before final push for world title
If @ 1st You Don't Succeed: Tie your hand up and try again, as Mason Taylor was far from the only rider to not only have some dire circumstances on the line but was forced to battle through some crucial circumstances. And while Kyler Oliver didn’t see any re-rides issued on the weekend, he struggled to get out of the chutes during both of his first two matchups. With the bull sitting in an unfavorable position in Round 1, he eventually nodded his head to get the thing going. Sent to the dirt by The Intimidator during his opening go, he assumed he’d get some better luck on night two. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case, as he was forced to reset his approach once again when attempting to lock in aboard Bruised Ego. The only difference? This time, he made the sloppy setup count!
Earning himself a sixth-place finish (his third-best effort of the 2024 UTB season) via his quality 87.25 point-strike, Oliver left the Louisville showcase with 27 UTB points. Which, on a normal weekend, isn’t insanely awesome. But when you consider he was very much on the bubble himself in attempting to qualify for the 2024 PBR World Finals: Unleash The Beast, the idea he moved up to the No. 32 rank courtesy of the ride is 100% welcomed in his book. Just 8-for-25 on the season overall, he’s been heating up at the perfect time, now successful in four of his last 8 attempts!
Finding himself in similar, desperate company, it was Andrew Alvidrez who entered the final showdown of the season on the outside looking in. Ranked No. 41 as the opening round began, the veteran Missouri Thunder rider wasn’t holding anything back. Winning Round 1 with his early-event, 88.25-point dance aboard Constitutional Carry, Alvidrez set the bar high on Friday night.
Which, after bucking off in both his Round 2 and Round 3 opportunities, ended up being just enough to secure the veteran his fifth trip to World Finals, as Alvidrez took home a much-needed 45 UTB points for his fifth-place effort. Up to the No. 38 rank as the pack rests ahead of the epic two-week finale, he’s one of many riders bringing some late-season momentum into Cowtown Coliseum!
RELATED: Rider qualifiers announced for 2024 PBR World Finals: Unleash The Beast
Final Five: With the 2024 World Finals qualifier pack officially announced, the 40 highest-ranked (and healthy) riders have their sights set on Cowtown Coliseum as four rounds of top-tier riding now separate them from the true endgame showdown inside AT&T Stadium. And despite several riders competing in more than 20 of the tour’s 23 regular-season showdowns, it was a set of world title hopefuls who captured the final five spots at the big dance as things sit.
Very much a unique mix of riders, Alvidrez is set to join Australian No. 40 Callum Miller (5-for-31), three-time World Champion No. 42 Silvano Alves (9-for-37), rookie No. 45 JaCauy Hale (3-for-14) and No. 47 Ederson Santos (4-for-8) within the final five riders to make the cut. While it hasn’t been an ideal season for any of these riders, their dreams of becoming the 2024 World Champion are still alive!
RELATED: Rider qualifiers announced for 2024 PBR World Finals: Unleash The Beast
With both Wingson Henrique da Silva and Clay Guiton very much questionable due to injuries sustained earlier this season, there’s a chance for two more alternates to make their way to Cowtown. And the way we’ve seen rookies, veterans, and literally ANYBODY come out of nowhere and make some noise, you’re going to want to make sure you’re inside the historic barn when the action begins May 9!
Photo courtesy of Andy Watson/Bull Stock Media
